The Temporary Mother
by Mulderette
Summary: Bertie provides some much needed mothering for Callen when he is stricken with appendicitis.
1. Chapter 1

_Thanks to Phnxgirl who gave me the suggestion for this story. It will be a short one, likely just one more chapter._

xxxxx

"G?"

Callen suddenly realized his partner had said something to him. He had no idea what though. "Sorry, Sam. I guess I was off in my own world."

"You've been doing that a lot today," Sam said, his eyes displaying concern. "Are you okay?"

Callen nodded. "Yeah, I'm good."

"Get some rest this weekend," Sam said. It hadn't been a particularly tough week at work, but G looked tired and a bit pale when Sam really looked at him.

"I will. You have fun with Kamran."

"You sure you don't want to come with me?" Sam asked. "You know my daughter always likes a visit from her Uncle Callen."

"Some other time, Sam. I'll let you have some quality daddy - daughter time this weekend."

"Okay." Sam pulled the Challenger up in front of Deeks' bar and glanced at his partner once again. He couldn't help but think something was wrong, but he couldn't put a finger on it. "You sure you're doing okay?"

"Don't worry about me, dad," Callen said with a grin as he opened the passenger side door. "Tell Kamran I said hello and have a great time. I'll see you on Monday."

"I'll call you on Sunday."

Callen nodded. "Talk to you then."

Sam watched as Callen headed into the bar and sat there a few moments afterwards. Finally, he sighed and pulled away. Even if there was something bothering his partner, it was always like pulling teeth to get things like that out of him. Hopefully, it was nothing too major.

xxxxx

Callen took a deep breath and slowly exhaled once he was inside the bar and out of his partner's scrutiny. The truth was he hadn't been feeling well since earlier that afternoon. They had gotten Chinese food for lunch, but he'd never had a problem with that before and his other team members all seemed okay. In any case, maybe he just had a touch of something. The bar was relatively quiet for a Friday night. Then again, it was still pretty early. Hopefully, it would get busier as the night went on. Deeks had put a lot of work into this place and he really wanted him to be successful.

"Hey, Callen, how are you doing?" Bertie asked as he walked over to the bar to say hello.

"I'm good. How are things here?"

"Not too busy yet, as you can see, but I'm hoping it gets more busy later. By the way, a delivery is being sent here tomorrow after 10. Do you think you could help me with it?"

Callen nodded. "No problem." He knew that Deeks and Kensi were away for the weekend and he'd do whatever he could to help Bertie out.

"Thanks, doll."

"You're welcome. Well, if you don't need me for anything now, I'm going to head upstairs."

"I can warm you up some dinner. It will only take a few minutes."

"No thanks," Callen said with a shake of his head. The last thing he wanted right now was to eat anything. "Big lunch."

"Okay, I'll see you in the morning then. If you change your mind there's food back there in the fridge. Rest well."

"Thanks. You know where I am if you need me."

xxxxx

Callen went up to his apartment and immediately stretched out on his bed. He really did feel pretty lousy. It didn't take very long at all before he fell asleep. A couple of hours later, he awoke freezing and very nauseous with stomach pain that was radiating towards the right side of his abdomen. He barely made it into the bathroom before he threw up everything he had eaten for lunch and whatever else was in his stomach. After he had brushed his teeth and rinsed out his mouth, he pulled a bucket from the cabinet underneath the sink and took it back into the bedroom in case he needed it. Then, shivering vigorously, he crawled back into bed and covered himself with the blanket and quilt, trying to warm himself up.

xxxxx

Bertie turned the bacon, making sure it was cooked to a perfect crispiness. She had to admit, Marty buying this bar was the best thing that could have happened in her life. It gave her a renewed sense of purpose and she enjoyed having more frequent contact with her son and getting to know his team. As for Callen, she understood he preferred to keep to himself much of the time, but she tried to give him some home cooked meals when she could and he seemed to appreciate her efforts. It was almost 9:30 and she had to admit she was surprised he wasn't up yet. He usually made an appearance much earlier on the weekends, at least to get himself some coffee. Unsure if she should awaken him or not, she finally decided to head up to his apartment, just to be sure everything was okay. She hoped he wouldn't think she was being a busybody.

She headed up the stairs and lightly rapped on his door. "Callen? Are you awake? I made breakfast." There was no answer. Sighing to herself, she tested the doorknob and found the door to be unlocked. She walked quietly into the apartment. "Callen?" She passed through the small living room and walked to the bedroom door. "Callen?" She nervously opened the bedroom door and saw that he was still in bed. "Callen? Are you okay? She asked approaching him. Once she got closer, she saw that he was definitely not okay. His face was bathed in perspiration and he was moving restlessly in his sleep. "Callen, honey?" She gently shook his shoulder. "Callen! Wake up."

Finally, Callen sluggishly opened his eyes and looked up at Bertie, appearing a little bit confused. "Bertie? What are you doing here?"

"I made you breakfast and I was coming to get you before the delivery got here, but that's not important. How long have you been sick like this?"

"Uh...since last night."

Bertie put her hand on Callen's forehead and shook her head. "Oh, sweetie, you're burning up. We need get you to the hospital."

"I'm okay."

"No, you most certainly are not okay. Now come on. You need to get dressed." She put her arm around him and managed to get him into a sitting position, but he grimaced as she did so and almost doubled over in pain. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Do you have sweats or something easy to change into?"

"In...in the drawer," he said shivering.

Bertie went to the dresser and pulled out a pair of gray sweats and gently helped Callen to put them on. "Do you think you can stand up?" she asked him as she put his feet into a pair of sneakers and tied the laces.

"I...I think so…"

"I'll help you." Bertie assisted in getting him to his feet. "Come on." She led him out of the apartment and actually considered calling an ambulance, afraid that he was going to fall down the stairs. She managed to get him down to the bar though and left a note for the delivery company that they were going to need to come back due to an emergency. She then got Callen seatbelted into her car and drove in the direction of the nearest hospital.

xxxxx

Bertie sat nervously in the surgical waiting room as she waited for Callen to get out of surgery. The diagnosis of appendicitis had been made quickly and they had wasted no time getting him to the OR. She felt like she ought to call someone, but she really didn't know who to call. Marty had never really mentioned much about Callen's family and she didn't really want to interrupt his and Kensi's weekend. They had been planning this little pre-wedding getaway for weeks and they would be home tomorrow anyway. The same went for Sam. She knew he had gone to see his daughter and she didn't want to ruin his weekend. It was a shame that Hetty wasn't around, but evidently she hadn't been communicating with the team for quite some time. For now, she would be here for Callen and do everything she could for him.

"Family of G Callen?" the doctor asked when he finally came into the surgical waiting room.

"Yes, I'm his step-mother," Bertie fibbed without missing a beat.

"Well, he came through the surgery just fine. He's in the recovery room now and will be moved up to a regular room soon. Someone will give you his room number as soon as he's brought up."

"Thank you very much, doctor," Bertie said with a smile as she breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness everything was okay with him. She sat patiently waiting until a staff member gave her Callen's room number then she went off to the gift shop. Unsure what to buy, she got a small balloon bouquet, some magazines and at the last minute grabbed a small stuffed bear. She knew he'd think it was silly, but somehow, she just had to buy it. She then headed up to Callen's room. When she arrived, she quietly walked in and sat in the chair next to his bed. He was asleep and she was relieved to see he looked a lot more peaceful than he had earlier that day. She put the things she had bought on his nightstand and sat back, just keeping watch over him. She knew if it was Marty in this situation, she wouldn't want him to wake up alone. She felt a compelling need to be there with Callen. Maybe it was just a motherly instinct, she really wasn't sure. All she knew was that she wasn't going to leave him here alone.

xxxxx

Callen slowly started to awaken, relieved that he was no longer in pain. He'd awoken briefly in the recovery room but had quickly drifted off again. Now he was definitely more aware. He opened his eyes and slowly got his bearings as he looked around the room. He was surprised to see Bertie sitting by his bed. "Hi," he said, meeting her gaze.

"Hi yourself," she said with a friendly smile. "How are you feeling? I've got to say you look a lot better than you did this morning. You gave me quite a scare."

"Sorry about that…" he said, looking embarrassed. "I didn't mean to cause so much trouble."

"Oh honey, you don't have anything to be sorry about. I just feel bad you got so sick. I wish you had told me last night instead of suffering like that. Now tell me, what can I do for you? Is there anyone you'd like me to call?"

Callen shook his head. "No, nobody." He would have called Hetty if things were different but they weren't different and he had no idea where she was.

That made Bertie feel more than a little bit sad. "How about your team? Should I let them know?" She was going to call Marty later on regardless of what Callen said. She wanted to inform him of what had transpired in his absence.

"No. There's no need to bother them on the weekend." He would talk to Sam when he got home and he was sure Bertie would tell Deeks.

She was going to ask about any family, but something stopped her from inquiring any further. She had a feeling there weren't very many people for him to call, or maybe he just didn't want to bother people? She really wasn't sure. She was going to have to see what her son knew about Callen's situation, especially since he was going to need some help during his recuperation and she fully intended to be there for him.

"Okay, why don't you get some rest then. Is there anything I can get you? I have some magazines here that you can read when you're feeling up to it."

Callen looked at the little display she had set up on his nightstand and smiled. "You didn't have to do all that for me...thank you."

"You're very welcome. Now get some sleep. I'll be right here when you wake up."

He was going to tell her that wasn't necessary, but somehow he knew she would stay anyway. He gave her a sleepy smile and closed his eyes. It was nice to know someone was with him who cared.


	2. Chapter 2

_Well, as usual, this story will be longer than expected. I shouldn't even try to predict these things. Thanks so much for your reviews for the first chapter. I was really surprised at the number of reviews and appreciate it so much :) I tried to respond personally to everyone but there were a few I couldn't so thanks to you, as well._

xxxxx

Once Callen was asleep, Roberta sat watching him with many questions on her mind. Except for vague small talk, Marty had never really told her much about the members of his team, except for Kensi, before the opening of the bar. She knew Callen's home had somehow been compromised, which was how he had ended up living above the bar, but aside from that, and a few small tidbits she had picked up here and there, she knew very little about Callen's life. It wasn't necessarily any of her business, but she was still curious. In any case, Callen was now peacefully resting and she did want to tell her son what had occurred. Pulling out her cell phone, she went down the hall and found a quiet area where she would be able to speak privately.

xxxxx

"I'm so glad we decided to do this," Kensi said, smiling at her fiance. The two were sitting on a wicker sofa on the balcony of their rental house. The house was right on the beach with a breathtaking view of the ocean. "It's beautiful."

"And so peaceful," Deeks said, returning Kensi's smile. Things had been so hectic lately with all the wedding preparations. This weekend was giving them the perfect chance to unwind and just enjoy each other. He sighed when his cell phone buzzed and he rolled his eyes when he saw the name on the caller ID. "My mother," he told Kensi, making no move to pick it up. "Really?"

"You have to answer it," Kensi said.

"I really don't," Deeks said with a grin. "We're going to be home tomorrow. What could be so important?"

"She's taking care of the bar for us, honey. Just answer it. Maybe it's important."

"Fine, I'll do it for you," Deeks said as he clicked the answer button and held the phone up to his ear. "This better be important, ma."

"I'm sorry to bother you, Marty, but it really is important."

"What's going on?"

"It's Callen."

Deeks rolled his eyes, wanting her to get to the point. "What about Callen?"

Kensi turned her attention to Deeks when she heard him mention Callen. "What's wrong?" she whispered.

Deeks shrugged. "What about him?" he asked again.

"He's in the hospital. He had an attack of appendicitis."

"Appendicitis?" Did they do surgery? Is he alright?" Deeks asked with sudden concern at the unexpected news.

"Yes, he had surgery. He'll be okay, honey, but I just feel so bad for him. There's no one here for him. I asked if there was anyone I could call but he said there wasn't. Does he have any family?"

"Is Callen okay?" Kensi asked worriedly.

"He's fine, baby," Deeks answered before turning his attention back to the phone call. "No mama, he doesn't have any family." He didn't think Callen would appreciate him giving his mother the details of Callen's personal life. "What about Sam?"

"Callen didn't want me to interrupt his weekend with his daughter. He didn't want me to tell you either, but, I thought you should know."

"How long is he going to be in the hospital?"

"If all goes well, he should be able to go home on Monday."

Deeks nodded. "Okay. Do you want us to come home?"

"No, you two enjoy your evening. I just wanted to tell you and to let you know I closed the bar for today. I'm sorry, but I don't want to leave him alone."

"Oh you don't need to stay with him," Deeks said quickly, wondering what Callen would think about that. "If anything, you'll probably make him uncomfortable. Don't worry about the bar, but you should go home and get some rest."

"Well you two have a good night and I'll see you tomorrow," Bertie said, not addressing what her son had said.

"Okay. Tell Callen we're thinking of him and we'll see him when we get back."

"I'll do that. Tell my soon to be daughter-in-law I said hello. Love you."

"Love you too, mama." Deeks clicked off his cell and looked at Kensi. "Damn…"

"Are you sure he's okay?" Kensi asked. "Maybe we should head back?"

"It's almost dinner time," Deeks said. "It's kind of late to head back now. We'll see him tomorrow. Besides, I don't think my mother is planning on leaving his side."

Kensi giggled. "I'm not sure Callen's going to like that very much."

Deeks shrugged. "I tried to get her to go home but you know how stubborn she is."

"Like mother, like son?" Kensi asked teasingly.

Deeks smiled briefly, but then turned serious once again. "It's kind of weird...we all have the danger of our job hanging over our heads all the time...I never really even consider the more ordinary things that could put our lives at risk."

Kensi nodded. "I guess that's true. We've all been pretty lucky as far as that goes, I guess."

"Yeah, we have been." He sighed softly as he gazed out over the water. "I guess we should have dinner. You want to order in or go out?"

"Let's order in," Kensi suggested. "This is a beautiful place we're staying at. I don't want to waste a minute of our time here."

"Sounds good to me, baby," Deeks said as he leaned towards her and their lips met.

xxxxx

When Callen awoke, he found himself alone. Unsure if he was relieved or strangely disappointed, he rang for a nurse to request some water. It wasn't long before one came in and delivered a pitcher of ice water and a cup. "Thank you." He slowly sipped the water, relieved that the horrible nausea he had experienced before the surgery was gone. He was just tired and feeling a little bit weak. After a short time, when he was on the verge of dozing off again, basically out of boredom, Bertie came back into his room.

"I didn't expect to see you awake so soon. I see you have some water. Is there anything else you need?"

Callen shook his head. "No thanks. I'm good."

Bertie nodded. "My son and Kensi send their best. They'll be here to see you tomorrow."

"They don't have to," Callen said softly, almost to himself.

"What kind of a thing is that to say?" Bertie asked. "Of course they're going to come and visit you. Wouldn't you do the same if one of your teammates was in the hospital?"

"Well yeah, but…"

"No buts about it," Bertie said, shaking her head. "Is it really so hard for you to see that people care about you?"

"I…" Callen stared at her for a long moment, thinking about what she had said, a little surprised by her bluntness. "I don't know," he finally admitted.

"Well, you should know. You and your team members, you're all good friends, aren't you? You've risked your lives for each other. It's pretty obvious how close you all are. It shouldn't even be a question in your mind."

Callen didn't say anything, knowing she was right. He knew his childhood years were to blame for a lot of what he still felt at times, and he knew he needed to just put it behind him. It just wasn't that easy to do though, no matter how hard he tried. Finally, he spoke quietly. "You're right...I know how much the team cares about me...I'm sorry."

Bertie shook her head, distressed by his apology. "Oh honey, I don't want you to be sorry. I just want you to know and believe how much you're cared about. That's all I was saying."

Callen nodded. "Thank you," he said softly. He was suddenly exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and it didn't take long for him to fall asleep. Bertie sat with him, troubled by his apparent low self worth. She needed to find out more about his past. He just seemed so alone and it bothered her, especially when she knew the way his team felt about him. She didn't think he would be very forthcoming about his history, but that's what family was for. She'd have a good talk with her son when he got home the next day and find out what he knew.


	3. Chapter 3

_Just wanted to thank all of you who are reading/commenting on this story. I really appreciate the response and am happy you like it so far :)_

xxxxx

Every time Callen awoke, whether to get his vital signs taken or just waking up on his own, he would see Deeks' mom asleep in the reclining chair by his bed. He didn't understand why she was staying with him. They certainly didn't know each other all that well. He couldn't imagine Deeks would be all that happy about it either. He didn't want to wake her to tell her to go home though. It was the middle of the night and that would be rude. He had to admit he was grateful to her. It was nice to have a motherly person who legitimately seemed to care about him, especially with Hetty off who knew where. He tried not to let on to the team just how much Hetty's absence was bothering him. He knew it affected all of them, but he was pretty sure it troubled him more.

"Penny for your thoughts."

Callen started slightly at Bertie's words. "I didn't expect you would have stayed all night...that chair can't be very comfortable…"

"It's actually surprisingly comfortable. I slept straight through the night. Didn't the nurses come in to check on you?"

Callen nodded, a slight smirk on his lips. "They did."

"Well, I'll be," Roberta said, laughing. "I can't believe I didn't hear them. Well, that should tell you just how comfortable this chair is."

"Maybe I should ask for one instead of this bed."

"Is the bed uncomfortable?" Roberta asked with concern.

"No, it's fine…"

"Do you need anything? I'd imagine they'll be bringing you in some breakfast soon. You should try to eat today."

"I know. I will," Callen said. "But speaking of breakfast, you must be hungry. I don't think Deeks would like it if you don't take care of yourself while he's away. I really appreciate you staying with me, but you should go home, get some food and get some rest."

"Don't you worry about me. There's a perfectly good cafeteria here. I'll get myself something."

"I really am fine though...I mean you don't need to stay."

She looked at him pensively, wondering if perhaps she was overstepping. Maybe it was overkill to be staying with him the way she was. "I'll head home after you've had something to eat and I see that you're doing okay. I want to check on things at the bar anyway."

"Yeah, the bar...I'm sorry about the delivery yesterday and that you didn't get to open…"

"Really?" Bertie asked, shaking her head. "What a thing to say. You shouldn't even be thinking about that. One day of the bar being closed isn't going to hurt anything. The important thing is that you're okay."

Just then, a dietary aide came in with a tray which she put on Callen's bedside table. He made no move to remove the dome though. "You don't want it to get cold," Bertie said as she took the dome off the plate. Underneath there was toast, scrambled eggs and tea. "Well, that doesn't look too bad at all."

Callen looked at her, wondering if she was going to offer to feed him next. He picked up the fork and slowly started to eat the eggs as Bertie smiled approvingly. "Maybe they'll let me out of here today," Callen said hopefully after he had finished eating.

"Why the big rush? It's not going to hurt you to stay one more day."

"I'd rather just go home…"

"I know, but the doctors know best. You should do what they tell you. That's the fastest way for you to heal up. You want to get back to work, don't you?"

Callen nodded. Now that she had brought it up, he realized he had no idea how long he would be out of work. No one had told him though he'd been pretty groggy when the doctor had spoken with him after surgery. "Hopefully, it won't be too long."

"I'm sure it won't be," Bertie said soothingly. If there was one thing she had picked up about Callen, it was that his job was very important to him. She couldn't help but notice that his eyelids looked heavy and she decided to cut him a break. "I think I'm going to let you get some rest." She got up from the recliner and looked at him questioningly. "Is there anything I can get for you before I leave?"

Callen shook his head. "No...I just want to say thank you for all you did for me. I really appreciate it." He knew if she hadn't checked on him that he could have been in real trouble. At the very least, his appendix could have burst and he didn't even want to think about the worst case scenario.

"No thanks necessary," Bertie said with a smile. "I'm just glad you're going to be okay."

"I will be...thanks to you."

"You take care of yourself, honey. I'll see you soon."

xxxxx

"Ma! Mama where are you?" Deeks called as he and Kensi entered the bar. He had seen her car outside so he knew she was there.

"Marty, what are you yelling about?" Bertie asked as she came out from the kitchen. "I'm not deaf." She went over to Kensi and gave her a hug. "Hi, sweetheart. Did the two of you have a nice weekend?"

"We did," Kensi replied. "How's Callen doing?"

"He's doing pretty well. I think he had a pretty good night. Evidently I was asleep whenever he woke up," Bertie said laughing.

Deeks' eyes widened. "You stayed with him all night? Really? God, ma…" He couldn't even begin to think what Callen had thought about that.

"Oh Marty it's not a big deal. I just wanted to make sure he was okay. Please don't make a mountain out of a molehill."

Deeks sighed. "I'm not, but for pete's sake, he's a grown man. He didn't need you to stay with him. He was in the hospital not that long ago and it was much more serious than an appendectomy. No one stayed with him then."

"Well, maybe someone should have stayed with him," Bertie snapped. "Kensi stayed by your side after all that happened in Mexico. It's not his fault if he has no one."

Deeks went silent as Kensi put her arm around him. "We visited him," she said softly. "He had plenty of visitors."

"You're not understanding that Callen's a loner...he likes being by himself," Deeks said.

"Well, I don't regret staying with him, Martin, no matter what you think. Everyone needs somebody to care about them. In any case, I hope the two of you are still planning to go see him even if he is, as you put it, a loner."

"Of course we are," Kensi said, trying to ease the slight tension that had sprung up between mother and son. "We'll go right now. Come on, Deeks."

"Talk to you later, mama," Deeks said.

"Give him my best," Bertie said with a sigh as she headed back into the kitchen. She still wanted to talk to Marty about Callen's past, but she knew this was definitely not the right time.

xxxxx

Callen was leafing through one of the magazines Bertie had brought him when Kensi and Deeks entered his room.

"Callen!" Kensi said as she went to him and gave him a hug. "You look wonderful, much better than I expected."

Deeks eyed the gift arrangement on Callen's nightstand and placed a bouquet of flowers from him and Kensi beside them.

"Thanks guys," Callen said.

"I see you already have quite a little assortment of things," Deeks said.

"All courtesy of your mom," Callen said. "She's been really good to me since all of this happened."

"She's been really worried," Kensi said, sitting on the chair next to Callen's bed. "We all were."

"No need to worry," Callen said with a faint smile. "As you can see, I'm doing well."

Deeks went and pulled the other chair in the room next to Kensi's. "So, how did this all come about? I thought you seemed fine on Friday."

"I did feel a little off after lunch," Callen admitted, "but then it all just kind of blew up on me Friday night and I got really sick. I was lucky your mom checked on me or I might have been in some real trouble."

"She checked on you?" Deeks asked.

"Yeah, Saturday morning...I told her I'd help her with a delivery, but I didn't go down to the bar so she checked on me."

"Oh…"

Kensi glanced over at Deeks then turned her attention back to Callen. "So, does Sam know about all this?"

Callen hesitated, looking a little bit guilty. "No...I haven't told him yet. I didn't want to ruin his weekend with Kam. He probably won't be back until later this afternoon. I'll call him tonight."

"You might not want to wait that long," Kensi said. "You should call him soon. You know he worries about you."

Callen sighed then nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I will."

The three friends settled into conversation with Kensi enthusiastically talking about the weekend. Deeks was quieter than usual and Callen couldn't help but wonder if he was bothered about his mom staying at the hospital.

"Hey Deeks?" he asked cautiously when there was a lull in their conversation. "You're not upset about your mom staying here, are you? She was just trying to help…"

"What?" Deeks quickly shook his head. "No...I mean I admit I was surprised that she did that, but I just wasn't sure how you'd feel about it. I'm good."

"You sure?"

"I'm fine, Callen. I'm just glad you're going to be okay and that my mom was there to help you before the situation got out of hand."

"Okay, good," Callen said, looking relieved. "I was surprised too...your mom definitely has a mind of her own."

"That's an understatement," Deeks said with a grin. He and Kensi stayed a while longer before deciding to head home.

"Do you need anything before we go?" Kensi asked as she gave Callen a gentle hug.

"I'm good, Kens," Callen said, smiling at her. "Thanks for coming and for the flowers."

"You're welcome," Kensi said. "Don't forget to call Sam."

"I won't."

"Take care, Callen," Deeks said before the two headed off. He could feel Kensi's eyes on him as they walked down the hallway towards the elevator. "What?" he asked as he pressed the down button.

"I didn't say anything," Kensi said innocently.

"Just say it," Deeks said as the elevator doors opened and he and Kensi stepped inside.

"Does it bother you that you mom stayed with Callen last night?" Kensi asked after the elevator doors closed and they were on their way down to the garage level.

"Of course not," Deeks said. "I'm glad she was here for Callen."

"Really?" Kensi asked, looking at him searchingly. "It doesn't bother you the tiniest bit?"

"Yes really," Deeks insisted. "It doesn't bother me. Callen needed someone. My mom was here for him, case closed. Anyhow, he's getting out of the hospital tomorrow. It's all good."

"You know, I'd understand if you weren't okay with it."

Deeks sighed heavily. "It's not a problem, Kens. I have other more important things to think about, our wedding, for one. I think we should concentrate on that, don't you?"

Kensi nodded as the elevator doors opened. "I think that's a very a good idea, sweetheart."

xxxxx

Sam scowled as he pulled his Challenger up in front of Deeks' bar and saw Callen's car parked there as well. "Really, G?" he said to himself as he got out of the car. He had tried to call his friend multiple times and Callen's voicemail kept coming on. It was more than a little bit aggravating. He strode towards the bar entrance and headed up the stairs towards Callen's apartment. Then he knocked loudly on the door. "G! Open up."

When there was no answer and his friend did not appear, Sam's aggravation level edged up higher. "I know you're in there! I saw your car out front." When he got no answer, he pounded on the door even more loudly than previously.

"SAM!"

Sam turned around and saw Deeks mom peering up at him from the bottom of the stairs.

"He's not in there."

Feeling a bit foolish, Sam headed down the stairs. When he reached the bottom he turned to Bertie. "You wouldn't happen to know where he is, would you?"

Bertie hesitated for an instant before nodding. "As a matter of fact I do. He's going to be okay, but right now, he's in the hospital."

"The hospital?" Sam asked, stunned. "What happened to him?"

"Appendicitis," Bertie answered. "He had surgery and he's going to be fine."

"Surgery? And no one thought I'd want to know about this?"

"He didn't want to interrupt your weekend with your daughter. He was thinking of you."

"What hospital is he at?" Sam asked, trying to keep his emotions under control. Bertie gave him Callen's hospital and room information and he left the bar to head to the hospital.


	4. Chapter 4

_Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing this story. I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate it, especially since I wasn't too confident about writing Deeks' mom. Glad you've been liking it so far :)_

xxxxx

Sam was still fuming as he pulled his Challenger into a space in the hospital parking lot. He took a few minutes to calm himself down before getting out of his car. After all, his partner had just undergone surgery. He didn't want to go into Callen's room and berate him. He headed into the hospital and a few minutes later, arrived at Callen's room. The door was open and he stepped inside. Most of his angry feelings dissolved though when he saw Callen, fast asleep, appearing a little bit pale, and totally vulnerable. His thoughts went back to Mexico when he had been sure Callen was going to die in the shed. He wasn't about to start a quarrel now over his own hurt feelings. Deciding not to wake his partner, he sat in the chair beside Callen's bed and picked up a sports magazine from the nightstand. He began quietly leafing through the pages until he saw Callen's familiar blue eyes gazing at him.

"Hey, buddy...how are you feeling?"

"I'm doing pretty well," Callen replied as he fidgeted with the top of his blanket.. "Um...I was going to call you…"

"Why didn't you?" Sam asked solemnly. "I would have come back right away if I had known what was going on."

"That's exactly why I didn't call you...I didn't want to ruin your weekend with Kamran…"

Sam shook his head. "This was kind of an extenuating circumstance, don't you think? I would think you'd know how important you are to me...especially after what happened in Mexico. You should have told me, G."

"I'm sorry," Callen finally said after a long silence.

Sam had to smirk at the guilty look on his friend's face. He certainly didn't want to punish him. He'd gone through enough. "It's okay...just if anything like this ever happens again, and I hope it doesn't, let me know what's going on, okay?"

"Okay," Callen said with a nod. Uncomfortable with the current topic of conversation, he decided a change of subject was in order. "So, how's Kamran? Did the two of you have a nice weekend together?"

"We did," Sam answered with a smile. "She's getting so grown up, G. I feel like every time I see her, she's gotten so much more mature than the time before."

"She's still your baby girl, Sam...she always will be…"

"Still, she's not that little girl having princess parties and wanting a Parker pony."

Callen chuckled at Sam's reference to his quest, years ago, to get Kamran a Parker pony for Christmas. Thanks to Eric, it had ended successfully. "You'll always have those memories though. They're not going anywhere."

"True," Sam said, taking a few moments to reflect on the childhoods of Kam and Aiden. Sometimes he missed those days, when the kids had been young and his wife had been alive, more than he could bear. It made the safety and well-being of Callen and his NCIS family even more important to him. "So, you need anything?" Sam broke free of his thoughts and turned his attention back to his friend.

"Some water?"

Sam picked up the pitcher on Callen's bedside table and found it to be empty. "I'll go get you some. Be right back."

"Thanks, Sam."

xxxxx

"Hey mama," Deeks said as he walked back into the bar. His mom was polishing the bar to a perfect shiny finish. "I thought you would have gone home by now. You must be tired." He was sure she hadn't slept well in the hospital the previous night, no matter what she said.

"Hello, Marty. Did you go see Callen?"

Deeks nodded. "We did. He seems to be doing well."

"Good," Bertie said with a satisfied nod. "Where's Kensi?"

"I dropped her off at home. Just wanted to check on things here."

Bertie sighed. "Everything's fine here. You really didn't need to come back here. You need to trust me more."

"Come on, ma. You know I trust you. It's just... it's my place. There's nothing wrong with me wanting to come here." He was proud of this bar. It was a nice place and he was going to do everything in his power to make it successful.

"I understand," Bertie said, noting the look of pride in her son's eyes. She wanted nothing more for the bar to be a success for him and Kensi. With any luck at all, it would become so successful that they would decide to leave NCIS and no longer have their lives endangered on what seemed to be a daily basis. She finished polishing up the bar and decided to broach the subject she had been wanting to discuss with her son. "So...about Callen…"

Deeks looked back at his mother, perplexed. "Were we talking about Callen? Mama...he's a private guy. You really can't be butting into his business."

"Who's butting in?" Bertie asked. "Honestly, Marty. I just have a few general questions. No different than anyone would ask."

Deeks rolled his eyes. "Let me get a drink first." He went behind the bar, grabbed himself a bottle of beer, then settled himself on a bar stool as he took a sip. "Okay...what do you want to know?"

"It's just...he seems very alone. Doesn't he have any family at all?"

"His mom passed away when he was just a little kid and he grew up in the foster care system," Deeks said, wanting to keep things as simple as possible.

"What about his father?"

"Not in the picture," Deeks said, taking another sip of beer. He refused to give her more than what was absolutely necessary. He didn't want Callen to be sorry he'd decided to move in over the bar.

"That must have been very difficult for him," Bertie said. She looked at her son thoughtfully. Marty had not had an easy childhood, courtesy of his abusive father, but at least he'd had her. She'd always tried, to the best of her ability, to protect him as well as she could. She would have hated to see him growing up in foster care, unloved and thrown into random homes. She was certainly no expert, but the knew many such homes were not good ones and a lot of people were in it for the money, not because of their undying love for children.

"I'm sure it was, but mama, Callen doesn't talk about these things and it was a very long time ago. I hope you're not going to bring it up to him."

"Don't be ridiculous," Bertie said. "Contrary to what you think, I'm not that intrusive. I was just curious. I'm not going to interrogate him about his life in foster care. However, I will look in on him from time to time when he gets home, if that's okay with you, of course."

Deeks rolled his eyes. "You don't need to be sarcastic, ma. Of course you can look in on him. Feed him soup or whatever you want to do. Just know that he keeps to himself and he won't like it if you start prying into his personal life."

"I would never."

Deeks shook his head then downed the rest of his beer. "I'm going to get home to Kensi. I suggest you head home too. You need to take care of yourself."

Bertie picked up the empty bottle Deeks had put on top of the bar and nodded. "I'll walk out with you."

Deeks smiled, glad that his mom was finally listening to him. She put the bottle in the back with the recyclables and the two walked out to their cars. Deeks watched protectively as his mother started up her vehicle and when she was safely on her way, he pulled his own car out into the street to head home to Kensi.

xxxxx

Bertie started driving towards her home, but then had a last minute change of heart and turned in the direction of the hospital instead. She just wanted to briefly check on Callen before going home for the night. You were never too old for a mother and it wouldn't hurt for Callen to know that she cared about him. She went to the hospital, then walked down the quiet corridors to Callen's room. When she stepped inside, she found him to be asleep. She decided to sit with him for a little bit and then she would go home. But, Bertie hadn't been lying when she said the reclining chair by Callen's bed was comfortable and she soon nodded off.

At a little after 3 a.m., Bertie awoke abruptly from a sound sleep. Confused at first, she took a few moments to orient herself to her surroundings and then heard what had likely awakened her from sleep. Callen's voice. "Mama? Mama please don't die. Please don't leave me. Mama, please wake up." She looked over and saw him fretfully tossing and turning under the covers. Immediately she went to him and gently stroked the top of his head. "Shhh… it's okay, honey. You're okay. I'm here. Everything is going to be okay…"

Eventually he calmed and settled back into a more peaceful sleep. Bertie quickly wiped the stray tears from her cheeks, not able to find it in her heart to leave him alone. It might be true that he didn't talk about his past, but in some ways, it was still very much with him. Had he been with his mother when she'd died? How had it happened? She couldn't help but feel for a young child whose mother had been suddenly ripped from his life. Although Callen was a grown man, her heart went out to him and what he must have endured. Once again, she settled back to watch over him. This time though, sleep did not come easily for her.


End file.
